The Scottish Power Pipe Band, led by Pipe Major Roddy MacLeod MBE, is joined on this fine recording by a host of very well-known musicians.

You'll find Phil Cunningham (keyboards), Matty Foulds (drums/percussion), Kevin MacKenzie (acoustic guitar), Stuart Nesbit (electric guitar), Malcolm Stitt (guitar/bouzouki), Foss Peterson (keyboards) and Alan Thomson (bass). Karen Matheson makes a welcome guest appearance on the one vocal track. Cunningham and Murray Blair produced the album, which combines very traditionally played tunes with imaginative arrangements featuring contemporary instrumentation.

Many readers will perhaps feel that massed Scottish Highland pipes and drums are best heard in an outdoor setting, so any producer has to get over that problem of recreating that magnificent, full-on "live" feel in a studio recording. The results here are very successful, though the sound can get a bit overwhelming when compressed through your living room speakers instead of being allowed to fill the air naturally. The album is crammed with superb reels, airs, marches and jigs: "Barney's Balmoral," "Donald Willie & His Dog," "The Mink Sporran" and many, many more.

There are some absolutely outstanding tracks: "Jigs Set" is a brilliant combination of bagpipes with drums, keyboards, electric guitar and bass -- this one has lively, danceable rhythm! Matheson's vocal on the Gaelic psalm version of "Amazing Grace" is both lovely and distinctive. And the anthemic "Cathcart" allows bass, keyboard and drums to surround bagpipe and rolling drum with huge success.

There's also the magnificent "Smallpipe Set" -- the more "contained" sound of those smallpipes comes through my speakers beautifully, and there's some nifty guitar work by MacKenzie and Stitt, too.

This should offer stirring inspiration for anyone toying with the idea of taking up the chanter!

- Rambles
written by Debbie Koritsas
published 11 June 2005